


but don't say a word, don't tell a soul, they wouldn't understand, they couldn't

by olivcrqueenx



Category: MacGyver (TV 2016)
Genre: Missing Scene, literally just a baby fic of a conversation I really wish they would have had, no beta we die like secondary macgyver characters, no ships only friendshipsss, post 5x03
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2020-12-19
Packaged: 2021-03-11 05:34:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 853
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28179927
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/olivcrqueenx/pseuds/olivcrqueenx
Summary: 'are you working in mac's living room? on a saturday morning?''our job never sleeps,' she sighs, 'and I'd work from home but my neighbour's had some kind of leaf blower thing on since eight am, and I can't hear myself think. also, I still have the key to this place.'bozer and riley talk about her denial of her feelings.or, this author just wanted a little more than what was explained about riley's feelings
Relationships: Riley Davis & Angus MacGyver (MacGyver TV 2016), Riley Davis & Desiree "Desi" Nguyen, Wilt Bozer & Riley Davis (MacGyver TV 2016)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 39





	but don't say a word, don't tell a soul, they wouldn't understand, they couldn't

**Author's Note:**

> i couldn't wrap my head around a lot of the tone and the vibe of that episode, but one line that actually bothered me was riley's outright dismissal of her feelings - so i wrote a bit of an extra scene to expand on that, and give it a little more direction. i just really wish the show would have more riley and bozer interaction! I hope you guys like, and vibe, with this one shot 
> 
> title is from scrambled eggs and whiskey by hayden carruth

'Hey.' 

Riley doesn't look up from her laptop as Bozer walks into the room. 'Hey.'

She's tired. She's still tired after yesterday even with the eight hours of sleep. Getting Russ back was exhausting. 

'Are you working in Mac's living room? On a Saturday morning?' 

'Our job never sleeps,' she sighs, 'and I'd work from home but my neighbour's had some kind of leaf blower thing on since eight am, and I can't hear myself think. Also, I still have the key to this place.'

'Leaf blower thing? You live in a high rise.' 

'Exactly. I have no clue what the hell goes on in there, but I need somewhere to work. Wait - what are you doing here so early?' 

'Looking for you.' 

Her hands momentarily still over her keyboard, before she continues typing. 'Yeah? Why?' 

'Cause I know when you're lying, Riley.' 

She scoffs. 'No, you don't.' 

He taps her legs and she sighs again, and slides them off the sofa. 'Don't know about that. We've played a lot of Among Us recently, I've gotten real familiar with your lying voice.' 

She furrows her eyebrows, smiling. 'You've never caught me as impostor even one time. Mac told you it was me and you believed me even though you saw him scan!' 

'That....' he drops down on the couch, 'was one time.' He looks at her for a moment. 'Listen. I don't want to force you to talk about it, but as your honorary older brother -' 

'- really -'

'- I have an obligation to make sure you're not lying to yourself.' 

She quiets in response. They sit together in silence for a minute. Bozer doesn't press any further, just gives her his thoughtful, concerned look.  
  
Riley hears Mac's laughter from the other room. 

'It's like with you and me,' she says finally, 'way back.' 

'How so?' 

'You wanted to date me. And I love you, Boze, but like a brother and a friend, and you still....'

'Didn't take the hint for a long time. I remember.' 

'I just - I don't want to be -' 

'... You don't want to be me.' 

She shifts forward on the couch. 'No, Bozer, that's not -' 

'No no, it's all good. I get it. I spent a long time trying to make something happen that wasn't there.' He tips his head to the side. 'Held on a lot longer than you know.' 

Riley sits back, and wipes some dust off of her keyboard before looking up. 'Then you get it,' she murmurs, 'there was just - there's just me in this. There's me on the outside, and there's - Mac, and Desi. They want to be together.' 

'And you don't know how long that'll last.' 

She meets his gaze. 'I didn't say that.' 

'No. but it would make sense if you did. Their track record hasn't exactly been great.' 

'That's..... I really want them to do it right this time.' 

'....Because you don't want to be hoping for more?' 

'Because they both deserve better! I can't -' She stops for a moment, before continuing with a softer voice. 'You want the truth, Bozer? I hate this. I hate that I feel this way. I hate that I have these two amazing friends and I feel like this. I just want them to be happy, and I don't want to be stuck in the past. I want to take a step back and figure this out, I want to figure out what I really want. I want -' it spills out, and she only realizes how true it is after it does, '- I want a future.' 

He gives her a knowing look. 'You know this job didn't rob you of that, right? You have a future.' 

She looks at him for a long moment. 'For a while after.... Aubrey, I thought....' She closes her eyes. 'I just... I want to move forward. I want to try. I want Mac and Desi to be happy, and I want to be able to be happy for them without feeling like..... like this. I know,' she shakes her head, 'it sounds stupid.' 

'Actually....' Bozer kicks her leg softly, and she looks at him again. 'That doesn't sound stupid at all. It sounds brave. And honest. And -' he shrugs, a smile creeping into his face '- way smarter than me, but you already had that part down -' 

Riley can't help it - she smiles, shaking her head, and she grabs the nearest pillow and vaults it at him.   
Bozer dodges to the right, and the pillow sails behind him. Mac enters just as it hits one of his contraptions hard, toppling it over backwards. 

'Hey!' He jogs over to it. 'I was almost done with that!' 

He looks to Riley, and she puts up her hands, a smile playing on her lips. 'Don't look at me. ' 

Mac shakes his head. 'Really, Bozer?' 

'What -' Bozer looks between Mac and Riley, '- it was her, man!' 

'Sure it was.' 

Bozer looks back at her, but Riley just smiles, raising an eyebrow at him. 

'One day, I'm gonna find out how you do that.' 

She grins as she goes back to typing. 'Yeah, good luck with that.' 

**Author's Note:**

> I like to think riley taking a step forward and trying to move on was a conscious decision made out of love for her friends, and not just denial. thank you for reading! stay safe!
> 
> you can find me @olivcrqueenx on tumblr


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